The Nucleus Frequently Asked Questions

What material will I find on The Nucleus?

The Nucleus contains information about and links to a wide range of materials for the use of undergraduate students majoring in physics and astronomy. Some of these materials are educational, and others are more for entertainment.

How do I find materials on The Nucleus?

You can search The Nucleus by keyword, author, or organization. The "Advanced Search" allows searches to be filtered by subject, grade level, cost, and item type.

How can I participate in The Nucleus?

Users who join The Nucleus can submit suggestions for materials to add to the database and can provide comments and join discussions about the materials.

If I submit an item, will it show up on The Nucleus?

Member submissions of items to The Nucleus are reviewed by The Nucleus editor. If accepted, more detailed information is collected about the items before posting. Acceptance depends on the item's suitability for meeting needs of undergraduate students majoring in physics and astronomy.

How can I add comments about an item on The Nucleus?

For members who are logged in, there is a link to add comments about an item on search lists and the detailed information page for the item. Links to these comments appear on the detailed information page.

Do I need to join The Nucleus?

No, you may search and browse the database without joining The Nucleus.

What are the benefits of joining The Nucleus?

Members of The Nucleus have additional tools that improve their use of the site. These include the ability to set preferences that sort materials according to their needs, a filing cabinet to store resources they find useful, discussion forums with other users, and the ability to recommend resources for inclusion in the database.

How do I get a picture to appear with my username?

Picture icons can be uploaded by editing your personal profile. This can be done by clicking on the "edit profile" link on the front page, and then clicking on the "edit personal profile" link. This provides the link for uploading icon pictures. Icons must be 50x50 gif files.

What is required to join The Nucleus?

To join, users must provide their name and email. Further information can be provided, if desired, to personalize The Nucleus for the user and enhance interactions with others.

Why do pages on The Nucleus change?

The Nucleus is a dynamic collection, meaning the information provided depends on a user's requests and the information that exists in the database. As the database grows, the displayed pages will change. A Filing Cabinet is provided to registered users for storage and simple recovery of information that they find important.

Is there a cost for The Nucleus?

The Nucleus is a free and open resource provided as service by the American Institute of Physics, the Society of Physics Students, and their partners. It is supported, in part, by funding from the APS Campaign for Physics and the National Science Foundation and is part of the NSF National Science Digital Library.

How do I access the discussion forums?

The discussion forums can be accessed through the "Your Voice" link on the front page, through the "Fine Threads" section on the front page, or through the student lounge. You must be logged in as a registered user in order to access the discussion forums.

What types of discussion forums are there?

There are a variety of forums on topics that are of interest to undergraduate students in physics and astronomy. Some of these are related to courses and education, others are related to entertainment and social topics.

How are discussion forums organized?

Forums are organized into "threads", which contain user posts on a particular topic. When you click on the link for a particular forum, the threads in that forum, along with their titles will be displayed. Click on a particular thread to view the posts to that thread.

How do I post a message in a thread?

There are actually two ways to post. If you want to post a response to an existing post, click on the "reply to this post" link in the lower right corner of the window in which the post appears. If you want to post a new message to thread, click on the "post to thread" link in the same location. In both cases, a new window will appear that will allow you to type in your post subject and text.

How can I create a new thread in a forum?

A new thread can be created by clicking on the "create thread" link in the upper right corner of forum windows. A window will then open up that provides space for a thread title, and the first post in the thread.

Can I create a new forum?

Only site administrators can create new forums. Suggestions for new forums can be submitted to site administrators for consideration.

What types of material can be posted in discussion forums?

Any appropriate material may be posted. A discussion of what constitutes appropriate material can be found in the "Terms of Use" for the Nucleus. Forums will be monitored and any inappropriate posts will be removed.